How Long to Keep Business Records in the UK

Sole traders must keep business records for at least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline of the tax year they relate to. Limited companies must normally keep theirs for 6 years from the end of the financial year, and VAT records must generally be kept for 6 years too.

Those are the headline rules for how long to keep business records in the UK, but the detail differs by type of record and type of business, and there are situations where you need to hold on to paperwork for longer. This guide sets out each retention period in plain English, explains what you actually need to keep, and gives you a simple routine so you never have to wonder whether it is safe to clear out a box.

Key takeaways

• Sole traders and partners: at least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline.
• Limited companies: normally 6 years from the end of the financial year.
• VAT records: generally 6 years. Payroll records: 3 years from the end of the tax year.
• Keep records longer if a return was late or HMRC has an open check.
• Digital copies are usually fine, as long as they are complete and readable.

What counts as a "business record"

A business record is any document or data that supports the figures on a tax return or set of accounts. That includes sales invoices, till records, receipts for purchases, bank and card statements, mileage logs, payroll reports, VAT workings and, for landlords, rent statements and bills. It also includes the bookkeeping itself, whether that is a spreadsheet, accounting software or a cash book.

HMRC does not insist on a particular format. It does expect records to be accurate, complete and readable, and to be available if it asks. Its guidance for the self-employed is on GOV.UK's business records page.

Retention periods at a glance

These are minimums. Rules can change and some businesses have extra requirements, so check the current guidance on GOV.UK for your situation.

Sole traders and partnerships: the 5-year rule

If you are self-employed, the clock does not start at the end of the tax year. It starts at the filing deadline. Records for the 2025/26 tax year, which ended on 5 April 2026, support the return due by 31 January 2027, and must be kept until at least 31 January 2032. In practice that is nearly six years after the first transaction of that year.

If you send a return late, the period can run for longer, and if HMRC opens a check into a return, keep everything until HMRC confirms the check has finished. The detail is on GOV.UK's page on how long to keep your records.

Limited companies: the 6-year rule

A limited company must keep both company records (such as registers of directors and shareholders) and accounting records. Accounting records must normally be kept for 6 years from the end of the last company financial year they relate to. According to GOV.UK's guidance on company and accounting records, you may need to keep them longer if, for example:

• they show a transaction that covers more than one accounting period;
• the company bought equipment or machinery it expects to last more than 6 years;
• the Company Tax Return was sent late; or
• HMRC has started a compliance check into the return.

Directors are responsible for this, even where a bookkeeper or accountant does the day-to-day work. HMRC can charge a penalty of up to £3,000 for failing to keep accounting records, and directors can face disqualification in serious cases.

Paper or digital?

You can generally keep records digitally. A clear photo or scan of a receipt, stored safely and backed up, is normally acceptable in place of the paper original, provided it shows everything the original did. That is worth doing anyway: till receipts printed on thermal paper often fade to blank well before five years are up.

If you are within Making Tax Digital, digital record-keeping is not optional. VAT-registered businesses, and self-employed people and landlords brought into MTD for Income Tax, must keep the required records in compatible software. Our guide to MTD digital records explains what that means in practice.

Step by step: a simple record-keeping routine

1. Capture as you go. Photograph each receipt on the day and attach it to the transaction in your software or save it in a dated folder.
2. Use one folder per tax or financial year, with sub-folders for sales, purchases, bank statements, payroll and VAT.
3. Download bank and card statements at least once a year. Many banks limit how far back you can download online.
4. Back up to a second location, such as cloud storage plus an external drive.
5. Write the "keep until" date on each year's folder or box when you close it.
6. Review once a year. Only destroy records once the retention date has passed and there is no open HMRC check.
7. Dispose securely. Shred paper and properly delete files containing customer or staff details.

Worked example (illustrative example)

"Tom", an invented illustrative example, is a self-employed electrician who also runs a small limited company for a separate online shop. In October 2026 he wants to clear out his loft.

• Sole trader records for 2019/20: the return was due by 31 January 2021, so the 5-year period ended on 31 January 2026. With no late filing and no open check, these can go.
• Sole trader records for 2020/21: the return was due by 31 January 2022, so he must keep them until at least 31 January 2027.
• Company records for the year ended 31 March 2020: 6 years from the year end is 31 March 2026, so these can normally go, unless they relate to equipment the company still uses and expected to last longer.

Tom shreds the oldest boxes, scans the faded receipts in the rest and labels each remaining box with its "keep until" date. The person and dates are invented to illustrate how the rules apply.

Common mistakes

• Counting 5 years from the end of the tax year rather than from the 31 January deadline.
• Relying on online banking and finding that older statements are no longer available.
• Keeping only bank statements without the invoices and receipts that explain them.
• Letting thermal receipts fade instead of scanning them.
• Destroying records during an open HMRC check or after a late return.
• Mixing personal and business paperwork, which makes any review slower and harder.

Let us keep your records in order

Our bookkeeping service starts from £150 per month and includes digital receipt capture, so every transaction has its supporting record attached and stored. For a routine you can follow yourself, see our month-end bookkeeping checklist, and if your business and personal spending still share one account, read our guide to a separate business bank account.

Records in a muddle, or missing altogether? Talk to us or see our pricing.